Illinois Central Zone Waterfowl Opener: The Off-season Hardwork Pays Off

Illinois Central Zone Waterfowl Opener: The Off-season Hardwork Pays Off

This past weekend was the waterfowl opener for the central zone.  Hopefully you were able to get out and enjoy it and maybe even harvest a few birds.  While in the blind our phones kept going off with text messages from people across Illinois telling us how their hunts were going.  Many only saw a few birds, "by the time you saw the birds that were here and went to pick up your gun, they were already 70 yards away"  said Rick Rasmussen.  Meanwhile others were shocked at just how warm it was on Saturday. "I was literally hunting in jeans and a t-shirt" said Chris Cramer. There were scattered reports of hunters harvesting a few, others were going home with their goose egg.

This wasn't just another opener for Capitol Outdoors.  It was Linc's first!  As you may know, almost two years ago we won a dog through a twitter competition from Soggy Acres.  Linc was about 10 months old for his first hunt, but we were able to put him on some single retrieves and as a puppy he did great.  With how young Linc was our goal was to make sure he knew how to heel, retrieve to hand and have a successful hunt.

2016 Illinois Fishing Tournament Applications Accepted by IDNR Beginning Nov. 1

2016 Illinois Fishing Tournament Applications Accepted by IDNR Beginning Nov. 1

Waterfowl and Deer hunters are taking to the field while fishing tournament organizers and clubs are starting to think about the 2016 tournament year.  Below is a press release from The Illinois Department of Natural Resources informing clubs and organizers that they can start applying for their 2016 permits.

Remember the Tournament Permitting Process can be done online.  This process was released back in September.   The hope is that this system will "create a quick, easy mechanism for applying for a fishing tournament permit and gathering the anglers’ catch data afterwards."  The permitting process can be found at the I-Fish-Illinois website.  Don't forget in order to apply for 2016 you'll need to submit the catch results for 2015 tournaments.  "Tournament organizers will see the words “post results” in their online tournament listing if they still have 2015 results that need to be entered."

Illinois Waterfowl Season - Central Zone Opener Starts Tomorrow

Illinois Waterfowl Season - Central Zone Opener Starts Tomorrow

It's finally here, the central zone opener for waterfowl.  We are really excited to be getting this years season off to a start.  Yes, we went out teal hunting, but the hot weather in early September kept most of the teal away from us. Some places, like the walk-in units at Carlye, did well.  However, both our dove and teal season were slower then what we would have liked.

For many of us tomorrow is like Christmas morning.  Regardless, if you're in the field, a blind or in a boat, being out there is all we've been wanting for since last season. Remember to double check that you have everything, set that alarm and get ready. Our season never really ends at Capitol Outdoors because we're always buying, fixing and strategizing for next year regardless if its hunting or fishing.  At least now, we'll be able to do some of that in the blind. 

Youth Participate in Illinois Hunting and Fishing

Youth Participate in Illinois Hunting and Fishing

This past weekend was full of hunting and fishing events.  Getting the youth outdoors is a necessary part of their childhood.  No kid grows up remembering their high score on a video game, they remember the time ducks were locked out and landed in the spread or that time a bass pulled some drag.